The Nightmares
by Byeeveryone
Summary: Venti is finally back, thanks to Frey's determination. She's back, and Frey knows it, but that doesn't mean her subconscious does. Venti discovers that her absence affected Frey more than she'd originally thought... -Lots of Drama and Angst with a lil Fluff at the end- Frey/Venti


The Nightmares

**Finally. I finally came up with a good Frey/Venti fanfic premise.**

**...Well technically it's just two interconnected oneshots but still! I think it's good, so I'm going to write them. Also maybe two others that won't be as sad and won't really offer much purpose other than being really funny.**

**This first one takes place shortly after Venti comes back in the third arc... Like, very shortly. You'll see. Warning: Tissues may be required.**

**I do not own Rune Factory 4, unless you mean owning the cartridge and not the rights. I own the cartridge. I have it right here. The rights are another story.**

Frey stared up at the dragon in front of her, her mouth moving silently as she attempted to form words. But none came to her mind. She was just too shocked.

"Don't tell me that after all this time, you've forgotten my face. I certainly haven't forgotten yours" Venti said teasingly, shaking Frey from her stupor. It was real. It was _real_, Venti was here and in front of her and she was already teasing her, like she'd never even left.

"Venti!"

Frey could do nothing but cry the dragon's nickname in sheer joy. She couldn't help it. Right now the only thing that her mind was fully registering was that Venti was back and in front of her. And she could only hope that it wasn't a dream.

"We have much to catch up on, Frey" Venti said, and Frey could only laugh. They did. They really did. She had to tell Venti everything significant that had happened in her absence, like how Vishnal had become less of a klutz for a few days because he'd believed in a silly statue Bado had given him. Or the time that Clorica had stayed awake for the entire day.

There were many other things that she wanted to tell Venti, but one was nagging in the back of her mind. Now that Venti was back, she couldn't just stand by and wait for another crisis before telling her. Never mind that she would probably end up tongue-tied and looking like a fool. As long as she could get the general message across, that would be fine.

"Venti, I have to tell you-"

"Ven!"

Amber's cry cut Frey off, and she turned to find Dolce, Pico, Leon, Dylas and the aforementioned butterfly-girl approaching.

"So it's true" Dylas said, a soft smile tugging at his lips.

"You're really back!" Pico squealed.

"Thank goodness" Dolce said softly, shooting a grateful look to Frey.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Amber cried. Her smile was almost as big as Frey's, as she started to tell Venti about how Illuminata had 'solved' a case while she was gone, though Frey knew that all she'd done was find a hat that she'd lost.

The former Guardians, along with Frey, spent the rest of the day filling Venti in on everything that had happened. Though, the one thing Frey wanted to say continued to nag at her, but she knew she couldn't say it in front of everyone. It wasn't as if they didn't already know. They certainly did, though she'd never actually _said_ anything, they knew. It was an unspoken truth, but none of them had any problem with it.

It was just that she didn't want to do it in front of others. No Guardians, no butlers, no travelers, no anyone. She wanted to be alone with Venti when she told her.

By the end of the day, everyone else in town had heard of Venti's return, and each of them had come to see her as well. Eventually, the darkness of night came, and the thing that had been nagging Frey was now eating away at her, making her fidgety and nervous. And, of course, Venti noticed.

"Frey? Are you okay?"

Frey jumped. It wasn't like her voice had particularly shocked her, but the words did. Her mouth went dry as she scrambled for something to say, but came up empty.

"She's probably just happy you're back" Leon offered, and Frey nodded her head quickly.

"It has been a long time... You can't blame me for being so excited" she added quickly. Venti laughed softly.

"Well, I'm happy to see you too"

Frey just giggled, her face turning light pink. It was then that the Guardians decided that they should leave.

"It's late. We can continue this discussion another time... And we certainly will" Leon said, a playful smirk on his face.

"I have no doubt" Venti replied, laughing softly. They bid their goodbyes, and they left, each of them mouthing 'Good luck' to Frey as they exited.

Frey was just about to go to her own bed, when Venti spoke.

"You were going to say something earlier"

Frey swallowed thickly. She was. She was going to say it, but then the others had come in and she'd slowly lost her nerve as the day had gone on.

"Yeah... But, um, it's a little late right now. Can it wait until morning?"

She wrung her hands, fearing that Venti would demand to know now.

"Well, okay... Good night, Frey"

Frey sighed in relief.

"Night, Venti. See you in the morning"

Later that night, Venti awoke to the sound of Frey's scream.

"Frey?!"

She sat up, hearing Frey start to sob in her room. She was about to call out to her, to ask her to come in so she could ask what was wrong, but then Volkanon, Vishnal and Clorica came running in.

"What's going-" Venti was about to ask them what was wrong with Frey, but they completely ignored her.

"Clorica, you go heat up some milk. Vishnal, you go get Miss Frey and bring her in here. I'll get the extra blankets and pillows"

Volkanon gave the orders as if it were practiced. As if they'd had to do this before. They each did as they were told, Vishnal going to get the stand-in princess and bringing her to stand in front of a worried Venti.

"Look, Frey. You see? She's okay. Lady Ventuswill is okay. You saved her. She's okay" he said soothingly, standing behind her so she could clearly see the dragon in front of her.

Frey just looked up at Venti, her throat in knots. She didn't speak, but only whimpered as even more tears cascaded down her face, taking the place of some that had already dried, or almost dried.

"She's okay, Frey. She's fine, thanks to you. She's here and she's not going anywhere"

Frey nodded her head slowly, showing that she understood. Right then, Clorica and Volkanon came in with the milk, blankets and pillows. Clorica took Vishnal's place beside Frey, giving her the milk while the two others folded the blankets to create a kind of makeshift bed next to Venti.

"She's okay. Lady Ventuswill is fine" Clorica cooed as Frey sipped the milk, her eyes glancing everywhere but always coming back to rest on Venti.

All Venti could do was watch. She didn't know what was going on, but judging by the way they kept telling her that she was okay, she'd guess it had to do with her disappearance.

Frey finished the drink, just as Volkanon and Vishnal finished the preparations on her 'bed'. Clorica took the cup and gently guided her to lay down on it, and Vishnal covered her with the last blanket.

"Lady Ventuswill is fine" Volkanon said it this time. Frey just nodded her head, seeming to get tired. Still, all three of them stayed until her soft snores signified that she was finally asleep again.

Venti, who had stayed silent up until that point, decided to speak up then.

"What just happened?" she asked, her voice a whisper, laced with concern that she didn't even try to hide. She didn't even try to put on airs at this point. Frey was her friend, and she wanted reassurance that she was okay. Appearances meant nothing compared to that.

"When you were gone, almost every night, she would have a nightmare about you" Vishnal replied, his gaze concerned as he watched Frey carefully, as if she would suddenly bolt up and start crying again.

"She hid them for a while, but one night, Meg invited all the girls to a sleep over. She said it would be good for her if Frey at least tried to have fun for one night, because she'd been moping. A lot... So she went, and she did have fun for a few hours, but when she fell asleep, she woke everyone up by screaming and crying" Clorica said, as she too stared in concern at Frey.

"Apparently, they had gone on since the first night of your disappearance. She claimed that she did not want to worry anyone by telling them, so she just stayed quiet about them" Volkanon added.

"But what we found out, eventually, is that she could sleep out here, and she would be able to sleep better" Clorica said.

"However, she always insisted on going to sleep in her own bed, which meant that if she had a nightmare, we would always be ready to calm her down and make this small, temporary bed for her" Volkanon said.

Venti stayed silent, processing all this information. The fact that Frey had had recurring nightmares about her being gone was enough to make her feel like her stomach had a bunch of stones dropped in it. Not only that, but she'd _witnessed it_. And how had they calmed her down before? They couldn't have been able to say 'She's okay' because there was no proof then. She wasn't there.

As if she didn't feel upset enough, Vishnal spoke up.

"She took your being gone worse than anyone else. But no one knew how we could help her. Sleeping in here, next to where you used to stay, where you're staying now, was only a temporary fix for when she was asleep. But when she was awake, it was easy to tell that she was depressed. She pretended to be happy and fine with it... But it wasn't like she was fooling anyone. But we couldn't do anything about it, so we just left it"

Venti truly was at a loss at this point. How could she even react to that? She wasn't sure. All she knew was that it was late and she didn't want to keep the three butlers in here all night asking them about Frey.

"You should go to bed. I'll talk to her in the morning" she said softly. The words themselves didn't seem very caring, but just the tone of voice she used told them that she was so scared and concerned that she was probably going to _cry_ if she couldn't help.

They left to go back to sleep, and Venti glanced down at Frey's face once more.

It couldn't have been comfortable. The blankets only provided so much cushion, she knew, but still, Frey looked peaceful. That gave Venti a bit of comfort, at least, but overall she was still worried.

She was gone for at least two years. It would have been three, had Frey saved her a month later. And she had those nightmares almost every night, according to Vishnal. That meant that almost every night, Frey woke up screaming and crying, and would have to come in here to sleep, with nothing but a few blankets between her and the floor.

And she was depressed? That didn't even sound right. Frey's face was not meant to be stained with tears. She was a beautiful person, inside and out. She did not deserve to have any kind of emotional turmoil, and yet she'd had to deal with it for almost three years. And the nightmares... They would probably torment her for a while.

"Frey... I'm okay" she whispered, though she knew that her friend was fast asleep and could not hear her. Her soft snoring and slow breathing was evidence of that. Still, she spoke.

"I'm okay. I'm here and I will never leave again, I will stay with you until you're tired of me. I simply cannot bear the thought of you having such an emotional burden... You do not deserve it. You are a beautiful girl, with a pure heart and you've gotten me to open up again... I don't like thinking of you with tears in your eyes. It doesn't suit you. Why do you think I asked you to smile as I left? I didn't want to know what tears would look like in your eyes. I didn't want to see that. But I saw it tonight... And I wish I hadn't. You truly do not look like yourself when you are crying. Please... I don't want you to cry again. I'm not leaving again. I love you too much to do that to you. So... Please don't cry..."

Frey did not respond. Her soft breathing was still slow, which meant that she was still asleep. But, Venti noticed something that wasn't there before. It was very small, very faint, but it was there. It let her know that Frey had heard her within her dreams.

On Frey's sleeping face, there was a small smile.

Venti didn't sleep again for the rest of the night. She kept watching Frey, worried that she would have another nightmare.

Thankfully, she didn't.

Vishnal came in at six and told her that Frey should sleep in, because she did lose at least an hour of sleep last night. Venti agreed, and asked him if he and Clorica could take care of Frey's farm.

"Of course. We usually do that anyway, if she had lost enough sleep" he replied. And he left her alone with a sleeping Frey once more.

After another hour or so, the former Guardians came by. They took one look at Frey on the floor, unconscious next to Venti, and they understood immediately.

"So she had another one..." Dolce said softly. Dylas watched her, concern in his eyes.

"I guess it's not gonna stop just because Venti's back..." Leon said, staring at Frey along with Dylas. Amber stared too, for a moment, but then her lip started to tremble and her eyes started to get watery and she had to look away.

No one spoke for a few minutes.

"I wish I could help her" Venti said softly. The others turned their gazes to her, but she was focused on the sleeping princess at her side.

"She helped me... So much... She got you all back... She helped me open up... And even when I was sure that I was dead, when I had completely given up, she went and got me back. And now..."

She swallowed thickly, tears welling up in her eyes, but she blinked them back. She didn't want to cry... Not now... She couldn't...

"Now, she's having nightmares about when I was gone. She had to deal with depression and turmoil for my entire absence, and now the only comfort I can offer is that I am back. But that... It won't get rid of the fact that I did leave. She watched me disappear. And because of that, she has to deal with these nightmares... And I don't know when they'll stop. I can't make them stop either. I just... I can't help her... I want to, but..."

Venti couldn't help it. She cried. She cried because she didn't know what she could do. There was nothing she could do. Absolutely nothing. And she hated it.

"Ven..." Amber whimpered. She latched onto Dolce's arm, sobbing into her sleeve.

A sleepy groan caused everyone to freeze. Venti was the first to look and see Frey sitting up, rubbing her eye sleepily.

"Amber... Why are you-" Frey cut herself off as her gaze went from Amber to Venti, and she shot up from her position on the floor, her eyes wide in shock.

"Venti?! Why are _you _crying?!"

Venti looked at Frey. Those green eyes wide in concern, and her hands clenched in fists, like she was going to punch whoever or whatever had hurt her.

How ironic.

"How could I not be crying?"

Frey's confusion showed on her face.

"What are you talking about? What happened?"

Venti took a deep breath. It seemed Frey didn't remember what had happened last night. That or she didn't think she mattered that much to Venti.

It had to be the first. Otherwise, Venti would cry all over again.

"Why? Why did you not tell me about the nightmares?"

Frey froze. Her eyes were wide in shock once more, but this time there was fear too. Her mouth opened, but no words came out, so she closed it again. She just stared up at Venti for a few more moments, before finally directing her gaze back to the blankets on the floor.

She eventually spoke, but she didn't look up when she did.

"Why would I have told you?"

"Frey..." Venti's voice was no more than a whisper. Dolce and Pico slipped out, with Amber still clinging to Dolce's sleeve with a vice-like grip.

"Why would I go and tell you that? Especially when you'd just come back... Everyone was happy yesterday. I wasn't going to go and ruin it"

Dylas crept out, Leon following close behind. Neither princess nor dragon noticed that they were now alone.

"It wouldn't have ruined it. I would have done my best to help you. It's the least I could do. But I didn't want to find out from Vishnal, Clorica and Volkanon"

Frey was silent for a few more moments.

"I didn't want you to find out at all. I didn't want you to worry like that"

"Well, I am! I am very worried!"

Finally, the green-haired girl looked up, though she carefully avoided meeting Venti's eyes. Still, they both saw the other's tears. And they didn't like it.

"Please don't. I don't want you to worry or cry over me"

"Damn it Frey! What don't you understand?! I am going to worry about you, no matter what you say!"

"But-"

"I am going to worry! I will worry because I love you! I love you too damn much for you to handle something like this on your own! So stop telling me to not worry!"

It didn't even take two seconds for both of them to realize what words Venti had just said.

_I love you._

However, Venti, being as prideful as she was, didn't bother taking it back or saying that she'd meant it 'as a friend'. She blushed, though. She couldn't stop that.

She just sat there, red-faced, waiting for Frey to respond.

It took a bit longer than she would have liked.

"You don't mean that"

Wait...

What?

What did she just say?

"Did you just say that I don't love you?" Venti asked, her voice a mix of shock, confusion, amusement, and just a little bit of fear.

"You don't. Or rather, not in the way I love you"

Frey's voice, on the other hand, was resigned and, perhaps, sorrowful.

Though, it didn't take long for Venti to figure out what she meant by that. Hell, with all that had happened since she'd been back, even Illuminata could have solved it!

Still, she had to make sure...

"How do you love me?"

If asked, she would deny that her voice shook as she asked that question. (Frey would tell you otherwise though)

The princess in front of her was silent. She dropped her gaze again, finding the floor very interesting as she seemed to think about her answer. Or how she would word it, perhaps.

"More than a friend"

Those words only confirmed the dragon's previous suspicions.

"I see"

Venti tried to think. How could she tell Frey that she just _might_ return those feelings? It seemed like a delicate situation...

"Do you really have to think about it that hard?"

Frey's voice stunned her, and she looked down. Frey was still looking at the floor, and judging by her voice, she was close to tears.

"You shouldn't have to think so hard. You either feel the same, or you don't. I understand if you've never considered it, but you still-"

"Then I feel the same"

Frey's head snapped up, her eyes wide. Venti was right. She _was_ crying.

"You heard me. I feel the same, I love you too. Now stop crying. I got enough of that for an eternity last night"

Frey choked out a laugh, and she looked up at Venti with a beautiful, much more fitting _smile_. Though the tears still fell freely, she could tell that they were happy ones. That, she could live with.

Speaking of which...

"Turn around, and cover your eyes. I'm going to try something"

Frey did as she was told without question, making Venti smile. That girl trusted her too much, sometimes...

Not that she was complaining.

Venti closed her eyes, and breathed deeply. This spell was old, and no Native Dragon had actually tried it before...

But they never had a reason.

There was a big flash, and she felt her form morphing, shaping, and becoming smaller. And when she opened her eyes, and looked down, she had human feet and hands.

With a grin, she tapped Frey on the shoulder, and almost laughed as the girl spun around so fast she almost fell. Her shock and joy showed clearly on her face, and she covered her mouth with a hand, and she just stood there.

"How do I look?" Venti asked, feeling a little self-conscious.

Frey moved her hand from her mouth, and took a moment before answering.

"You look... _Beautiful_"

"Heh... Thanks" Venti replied, her cheeks turning pink.

They stayed silent for a while longer, just looking at each other up close.

"Frey?"

"Yeah?"

Venti hesitated, before leaning over and gently kissing Frey's cheek.

"Don't hide things from me again, okay?"


End file.
